LNG

German Chancellor Helmut Scholz has led an inauguration ceremony for the nation’s first LNG floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU), the “Höegh Esperanza”, at the North Sea port of Wilhelmshaven.

June 25 (LNGJ) - German LNG Terminal, the company developing an onshore facility at Brunsbuettel on the Elbe River south of Hamburg, has selected a Spanish-German joint venture comprising Cobra Instalaciones y Servicios SA and Sener Ingeniería y Sistemas SA of Spain and Bonn-based TGE Gas Engineering GmbH for the final phase of the engineering, procurement and construction contract award.

   “This final phase will consist of a comprehensive value-improvement exercise and detailed price actualization to make the project more cost efficient to conclude a binding EPC contract by the end of 2020,” said German LNG Terminal. “It is expected that the detailed design and engineering work, necessary to develop purchase orders of long-lead products, can then be started soon after the finalization of the contract,” it added. German LNG Terminal is a joint venture involving Dutch gas network company Gasunie BV, global Dutch storage company Royal Vopak and Germany’s Oiltanking GmbH, a subsidiary of Marquard & Bahls AG of Hamburg.

German LNG Terminal, the Dutch-led joint venture developing a planned liquefied natural gas import terminal at Brunsbuettel on the Elbe River near Hamburg, expects to make an investment decision soon after binding import contracts have been finalised at the end of 2020.

RWE, Germany’s largest utility and power producer and whose headquarters are in the city of Essen, confirmed that it had secured potentially 5 billion cubic metres of import capacity at Brunsbuettel as it also seeks a wider role for the facility.

“Currently the parties are in the final phase of negotiating fully binding legal contracts for LNG imports,” said RWE and German LNG Terminal in a joint statement.

“RWE and German LNG expect this process to be finalised by the end of 2020, putting German LNG in a position to reach a positive investment decision shortly thereafter,” it added.

German LNG Terminal is a venture comprising Dutch gas network operator Gasunie, German tank storage provider Oiltanking GmbH, and Dutch storage company Royal Vopak.

Gasunie and Vopak were the development companies behind the Dutch Gate LNG terminal at the port of Rotterdam.

RWE added that LNG import terminals like Brunsbuettel could also be combined with entry points for (liquid) hydrogen produced in other regions of the world where wind and solar energy are available at larger scale and lower cost than in Germany.

“Existing gas pipelines connected to the LNG terminal are perfectly fit to distribute hydrogen locally,” said RWE.

Javier Moret, Global Head of LNG at RWE Supply & Trading GmbH, said his company was an advocate of LNG.

“It can provide Germany with clean and affordable energy today and at the same time contribute to reducing emissions in the maritime and road transport sector as an alternative fuel,” added Moret.

“At the same time we want to make sure we are prepared for the next technological advancement. In the future hydrogen will play a key role as a climate-neutral fuel in the energy mix,” he explained.

“We are prepared for this next step with the new agreement. Therefore we are happy to support German LNG Terminal’s initiative in this field,” stated Moret.

Currently the parties are in the final phase of negotiating fully binding legal contracts for LNG imports.

RWE and German LNG expect this process to be finalised by the end of 2020, putting German LNG in a position to reach a positive investment decision shortly thereafter.

Another German utility, Uniper, is backing a second German import project at the deepwater North Sea port of Wilhelmshaven using a floating storage and regasification unit.
Uniper has said it expected that a competitive tender process would be conducted in the months ahead to seek binding accords with potential customers

Germany, the largest natural gas pipeline consumer in the European Union and a future LNG importer, is set to be the first country to end both nuclear and coal power under an agreement to compensate workers, companies and regional governments as it switches off coal-fired plants by 2038.

Gaztransport and Technigaz (GTT), the French technology firm for designs of systems for the maritime transportation and storage of liquefied natural gas, said it had completed an LNG terminal and bunkering training simulator for the Maritime Training Centre in Hamburg to develop personnel skills before Germany makes its debut as an importer and maritime fuel supplier.

German LNG Terminal, the joint venture company developing the European nation’s first regasification facility at Brunsbuettel on the Elbe River near the port of Hamburg, said it has started the engineering, procurement and construction pre-qualification tender process.

The company said potential EPC contractors who make known their interest in bidding for the project on or before 1st July 2019 will receive a pre-qualification package.

Binding lump-sum offers will have to be prepared and submitted by pre-qualified bidders between August and October 2019.

The winning bidder will be announced during the first quarter of 2020, followed by the release of an early or limited notice to proceed to commence scheduled early activities.

The Brunsbuettel project is a joint venture involving two Dutch companies, natural gas operator Gasunie, global storage company Vopak as well as German energy firm Oiltanking GmbH, a subsidiary of the Marquard & Bahls AG of Hamburg.

RWE, one of Europe’s leading energy companies and utilities based in the German city of Essen, has already booked “a considerable part” of the capacity from the planned terminal.

Germany is the only major European Union nation without LNG import facilities and has come under political pressure from partners in Brussels and other allies to accept North American LNG in competition to Russian pipeline gas as part of the EU bloc's energy security policy.

The joint venture plans to build, own and independently operate a combined import and distribution LNG terminal in Brunsbuettel.

“The terminal’s business model is characterised by the provision of multi-purpose services as well as open access to terminal capacity,” explained the developers.

They pointed out that Brunsbuettel benefits from several advantages:

a) Its location near the North Sea along the Elbe river, and close to the Kiel Canal and therefore its easy access to markets in North-West Europe, Scandinavia and the Baltics;

b) The close proximity to the port of Hamburg with according LNG bunker potential;

c) The location is within the ChemCoast Park that includes industrial customers with high energy needs; and

d) There is strong support of both local and regional government. In addition, the German federal government supports an LNG terminal as it contributes to gas supply diversification and provides efficient supply chains for LNG as an alternative fuel.

“The market’s reaction to the Brunsbuettel terminal project has been positive with interest from future customers reflected in the execution of several Heads of Agreements,” said the German LNG Terminal company.

The application for exemption from regulated third-party access and the permit application are based on terminal capacity of 8 billion cubic metres per annum.

The developers said that it was envisaged that up to four EPC Contractor entities will be pre-qualified to enter the competitive tender process.

“Experience in design and construction of similar projects and awareness of German codes and practices will be essential attributes to pre-qualify, besides financial strength and safety track record,” said the German LNG Terminal company.

Uniper, the German energy company and utility, launched an open season in May 2019 to test interest in another German LNG import terminal project planned for the North Sea port of Wilhelmshaven.

Uniper said it would test the interest of natural gas companies in using its planned facility and was looking for a partner to be the operator.

Dusseldorf-based Uniper said the proposed terminal would use a floating storage and regasification unit to handle around 7.5 million tonnes per annum of LNG and customers had until July 19 to express an interest.